Tuesday, September 30, 2008

To mark the 20th season premiere of The Simpson's, National Geographic sat down with daughter, musician and passionate environmentalist Lisa to talk about going green, eco-tourism and recycling among other things.

Since nuclear power has low carbon emissions, do you now respect Mr. Burns?You know what has really low carbon emissions and releases no radiation? Wind power! Sorry I lost my cool... you know what else is losing its cool? THE EARTH!

My brother and I get on gChat and talk about TV occasionally. Here's today's installment on the season premiere of Desperate Housewives. The show is now taking place five years into the future. I add some punctuation, capital letters, and a few items in parentheses so the conversation actually makes sense.

me: I happened to enjoy Desperate

10:30 AM Chris: Yeah, I guess it got a little better towards the end.

10:31 AM The 5 yr experiment should be interesting, but it should take the show in a new direction.

me: I liked the whole thing. I was kind of sick of some of the old stories and this kind of lets everyone start over.

10:32 AM Chris: Yeah I feel ya. I think they really did it because, babies aren't that interesting. A couple of the women had really young kids--C'mon, how fun is that?

10:33 AM me: Not fun at all. I thought it was interesting that we still didn't really see Susan's kid.He's like 5, she was without him a lot.

10:35 AM Chris: Yeah, I would agree on both fronts about Lynette's kids...I was kinda wondering the same thing. But once again..8th graders are boring. There's a lot you could do with high school kids who are of driving age.

I think they are just trying to maximize story lines.

me: Yeah but they could've made the other son driving age

Chris: Ahhhh, good point.

10:36 AM But he is kind of a nerd right? Maybe he's already at college

me: Well he must be.

If their saying the twins were 11 last year, the older one must've been 12 or 13.

Chris: yep

10:37 AM me: Well either way it was interesting. I like that Edie's husband is a rage-a-holic.

He's back! I havent been this excited since Popeyes Chicken put a location in my home city. Last night, HBO's favorite comedian, Chris Rock, premiered his fourth primetime comedy special and boy did he not dissapoint.

Dont kill the messenger took on a daring new format in which Chris taped performances in London, New York, and South Africa then pieced clips from each show together to form one fairly seemeless comedy special. It was a bold move on Rock's part and I was skeptical at first, but after a short moment of dizzyness, I felt like I was watching comedy history.

Rock touched on politics, the economy, race, and of course...relationships. The show was well paced and quite frankly, hilarious. Chris Rock has firmly cemented his position as the best stand up comedian of our era.

Now if we can only get that crazy Dave Chappelle to come out of hiding, maybe he could challenge the throne.

Paul Newman passed away last night at the age of 83. He was a legendary actor, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He'll be remembered for his beautiful work on and off screen and for a member of the Cool Old Guys Club which now consists of Robert Redford, Anthony Hopkins and Clint Eastwood.

Though Newman is best known for his work on the silver screen, few know about his career in television. The Remote Island compiled some of his better moments in a fitting tribute to the star.

Newman is survived by his wife of 50 years, Joanne Woodward, and their five children.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

I really liked tonight's season premiere of The Office. I'll try to keep this relatively spoiler free for those of you who are time-shifting tonight.

Last year's hour-long episodes didn't work for a lot of folks because the familiar quick, snappy pacing of the show was diluted to fill the extra 22 minutes. I was pleased to see that didn't happen this time. This episode had some excellent one liners, a healthy dose of drama and intrigue and some seriously feel-good moments. (Anyone else want to give Stanley and Jim giant hugs?)

It was really reminiscent of season two or early season three when the show was at its creative peak. Hopefully they can ride this wave all season long. Remember they have a 30 episode order to get through. Even with several hour long eps, that's a lot of story to fill.

Today, we celebrate edubTV's first birthday! Thanks to all of you, (friends, lurkers, and even the angry Archuleta fans) for making this year a blast.

We're kicking off year two in high style as makeover plans for the blog are in the works. Hopefully we can get all our ducks in a row in time for the 500th post, a milestone we'll hit in a little under a month.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Tom Petty's been reminding us all summer that "the waaaaitttting is the hardest part." It's been a long, relatively unfunny summer and I'm ready to welcome The Office back into my life.

Here's some updates to get you ready for season five (Sidenote: who knew they'd make it this far?)

The New York Times did a really interesting piece on Office writer/producer/actor B.J. Novak. Novak's risen to fame almost as quickly as his character Ryan. Hopefully he won't crash and burn and end up in white collar prison too.

Just a few weeks back, New York Magazine did an even better story on Ed Helms. Helms and his character may be more complex than meets the eye. And did you know he really did sing acapella in college?

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

American Idol season 2 runner-up Clay Aiken finally came out of the closest. Kudos buddy! Though I'm sure there are a million and one teenage girls and older moms who are so sad to hear they'll never be Mrs. Aiken, you just gave hope to many more gentlemen fans.

The media blast for this is off the charts. People magazine is running a full exclusive on the web tomorrow morning and Aiken and his baby are this week's cover story.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Amazing Race won the Emmy for Best Reality Competition Program last night for the 6th time in a row. (Anyone else think it's sad Phil Keoghan didn't get nominated for best host? He runs circles around Howie Mandel.)

Anyway, the win really amped me up for season 13 of the show. In a really cool promotional effort, CBS placed advertisements for the upcoming season on rooftops of buildings near the Los Angeles airport so travelers can see them from airplanes. It's apparently the "first-ever aerial view network billboards," according to a statement released by the network.

CBS is also advertising the new season on printable e-tickets so every flyer can join in on the fun.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

It ended on time, even a few minutes early. Though it got a little annoying towards the end with every presenter reminding people the show was running late and that their jokes were cut. Worse? The jokes that stayed weren't that good. Watching Rickey Gervais blow a few minutes on a good bit was well worth it though.

Just what were the hosts there for? They didn't even open the show (thanks Oprah!) and they only appeared once or twice the rest of the night. If this show is going to have hosts then they need to do something. It should be their job to move the show long. Otherwise, skip the whole job altogether.

My picks were pretty off for the better part of the night. Bad for me but great for some folks who surprised the oddsmakers and took home the awards. I definitely tip my hat to Bryan Cranston who foiled Emmy pools nationwide for his best actor in a drama series win over "sure thing" Jon Hamm. Here's the thing...I called Bryan Cranston's win not once but twice right here on this blog. I really should've double checked this thing before submitting my list.

I really enjoyed the way they incorporated mock sets from old television shows. What a fitting tribute to some great programs. (And did I mention it was great to see Martin Sheen again? I just watched the finale of West Wing on Bravo last week and I realized just how much I miss it.)

How much do I love that Tina Fey took home the biggies tonight? Almost too much. She's truly remarkable. I still don't quite get why folks aren't watching 30 Rock.

Other than Tina Fey, the biggest winner of the night? Don Rickles. Funniest guy on stage. We need to welcome Old Hollywood back for these things every year.

The Laugh-In folks can stay at home though. Laugh-In is usually much funnier, too bad that's the impression most young people will be left with after tonight. Check some of it out at your local media library folks. It was great 40 years ago.

This is my Super Bowl. I've booked and scheduled every minute of my day today to ensure I can successfully be in front of my television and ready to watch in awe without feeling guilty about homework, job applications, etc. I've studied, I've read thousands of blogs entries and watched even more hours of TV in preparation for this night. This is my thing. This is the one night my medium gets to truly celebrate itself. After a long year with a Writer's Strike and turmoil with the actors, the industry needs this. Frankly, I need this too.

So here are my picks for the primary categories at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards. I pretty much stuck to party lines here (30 Rock & Mad Men) but in categories where I couldn't, I went with my instinct...even if it means Ryan Seacrest wins an Emmy.

COMEDY SERIESCurb Your EnthusiasmEntourageThe Office30 RockTwo and a Half Men

Saturday, September 20, 2008

So it's no secret that I'm a little into Mad Men. This weekend that love hit a new level of potential fanaticism.

First, I spent sometime researching the title and artist of the MM theme song and downloading a copy. In case you were wondering, it's not an original song for the show. It's a electronic jazz piece called A Beautiful Mine by a group called RJD2. (By the way, that's really hard to say without saying R2D2.)

Anyway, I downloaded the MP3 and went over to Mobile17. If you're not familiar with the site, you can take any MP3 on your computer and make a ringtone 4-40 seconds long...for FREE! Go now. So anyway, I made myself a Mad Men theme song ringtone and now whenever my phone rings I wait a little bit to answer. Sorry if I missed your call today.

My second fanatical moment? I heard Jon Hamm will be hosting SNL in October and I screamed at the top of my lungs. Smoking and slick period costumes combined with Kristen Wiig and other funny folks? Swell news indeed.

Third, I am re-arranging my schedule tomorrow to ensure I can watch the Emmy's live tomorrow evening just so I can see the show continue to make history. I may Live Blog, we'll see if I've got the energy. However, for sure I'll post my Emmy picks tomorrow morning. Expect a lot of 30 Rock and of course...Mad Men.

Travis Barker, ex-Blink-182 drummer and former star of the MTV Reality series Meet The Barkers, was critically injured in a plane crash early this morning in South Carolina. The Lear 60 jet was en route to Van Nuys when air traffic controllers saw sparks. The plane didn't make it off the ground and crashed on a nearby road.

Four of the six passengers on the plane were killed and Barker was airlifted to the burn unit in a hospital in Georgia. Early reports are also saying DJ AM (best known for being Nicole Richie's former fiance) was also on the plane and may be the other survivor. At this time, that rumor can't be substantiated.

A tragic way to kick off the day. Let's think good thoughts for the families of the dead and cross our fingers for the survivors.

Friday, September 19, 2008

I finally went through with that New Year's Resolution and bought the domain name for the humble blog. You can now get here just by going to edubTV.com. Feel free to update your Google Readers and favorite websites on Facebook accordingly.

Get it? Because Dexter is a serial killer with some ridiculous issues and because David Duchovny and his character Hank Moody love ladies...a little too much. Oh Showtime, you slay me.

I'm holding out for the actual premiere on September 28. Not only because I want to see it in HD, but because when I was a kid season premieres meant something. Now you can see them three weeks early and watch them over and over again all week. Where's the fun in that? Sometimes I miss the good old days of appointment television.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Bravo recently began the new reality TV series, “The Rachel Zoe Project.” The show follows A list celebrity stylist and fashion semi-icon Rachel Zoe through her daily routine. Only two episodes have aired and I am completely and utterly obsessed.

Along with a slew of hilarious catch-phrases and crazy antics, Zoe provides an insider look into the world of celebrity fashion. More importantly though she provides a fairly raw look at her own life, at her work style, her goals and her personal relationships.

(Brad)

I’ve found the show to be more than amusing as the real life characters are seemingly unreal. Taylor and Brad, Rachel's styling associates and absolutely hysterical. Bizarrely, I do know people like this, however it’s hilarious to watch these characters live on TV and in a different context. I can’t wait for more episodes to come!

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Take a look at this very old footage from Sesame Street featuring Richard Pryor going over the alphabet.

He reminds me of a teacher who's just one page ahead in the book. Every new letter seems like a little surprise. I also like the short story he tells while announcing all the letters. Up until J or so it sounds like they're going to brawl.

But despite all of this, Pryor conducted himself with the cool demeanor of a much sober-er man.

Total Request Live, once a popular mainstay on MTV (and the final place to watch videos on the network) will end its 10-year run in November.

The show peaked in the late '90s with SoCal DJ turned lucky bastard Carson Daly at the helm. Since then the show's had a string of hosts, crappy guests, spectacles, stunts and a fair share of meltdowns. (Remember this? It was one of my favorites.)

Any remember the pre-cursor to TRL, MTV Live? Daly hosted that one too. It was more of a talk show format though with a few videos thrown in for transitions. It was smart, timely and pretty funny. Maybe MTV should bring something like that back. Though it might be too slow for their current crowd. Not enough flashing lights, online voting or text messaging for the young people to stay interested.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

News just broke that Oscar winner, Obama darling, Dreamgirl, and former American Idol contestant Jennifer Hudson is engaged to her boyfriend of less than a year, David Otunga. While Otunga may not sound too familiar, maybe the name "Punk" rings a bell. Yep, J-Hud's fiance was a former contestant on I Love New York 2.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure he's a nice guy and they probably have loads in common considering they're both from Chicago and they've survived reality shows. But with an Academy Award on her mantle, a budding film career and a new album dropping soon, Jennifer Hudson seems poised for stardom and her future hubby well...doesn't.

So let's do our girl a favor and offer up some suggestions for potential mates. Sure she's engaged, but like my man Michael Scott says, "BFD, engaged ain't married."

Here are my three picks for eligible fellas:

Kanye West: He's from Chicago too! He may be kind of a short fuse but most genius' are. Pros: He's bright, has great clothes, brilliant artist (possibility for duets?) Cons: He's always on tour, he's an awful blogger and did we mention that short fuse?

Jason from The Bachelorette: If dating show rejects are J-Hud's thing, then look no further than Jason. He was left down on one knee on the last season of The Bachelorette. Cue one giant case of the weepies. Pros: Adorable, great dad to that little son of his. Cons: Already committed to serve as next Bachelor...may be committing for his affections with 15 other ladies.

My brother Chris: He has ambition, he cooks, he owns a condo, and guess where he was born? Chi-Town! Pros: Marrying someone out of the spotlight could give her a nice repreive. Cons: I would never stop requesting that she sing songs from Dreamgirls.

Anyone else have some good suggestions? What's that Prince William up to? That quarterback for USC was pretty hot yesterday when he trounced Ohio State. Someone fax his number to Hudson's people...stat!

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Hey peeps. Lots to write about and just when I think I don't have time to do it all, I remember my dear old friend Hump Day Update.

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire got a serious makeover for its season premiere this week. There's a time limit on the questions, new crazy life lines, and help from celebrity experts. I use the term celebrity loosely as so far the only celebrity has been Bill Nye the Science Guy, though he is is 2 for 2. It speeds up the show and that time limit makes you second guess yourself on even the easiest questions. I know what you're all thinking, "How long is the time-limit for the million dollar question?" It's 45 seconds plus all of the time you bank during the other questions. So if you only use 5 seconds during a 30 second time period, 25 seconds goes to the bank. Neat huh?

Ellen Degeneres is the new spokesperson for Cover Girl. I don't wear make-up but I appreciate the fact Cover Girl uses funny, vibrant, down-to-earth celebs like Queen Latifah and Ellen for their ad campaigns. Classy.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

One could argue Weeds has been crazy this season. Drug trafficking, the Mexican mob, cheese shops, teenage three-ways, etc. But where Entourage takes their crazy and spins it into one-dimensional episodes of fantastical excess, Jenji Kohan and the folks over at Weeds craft complex tales of betrayal, lust and family.

We were treated to the sharp, irreverent wit of Justin Kirk, who's character Andy has morphed from a comic punching bag to a family linchpin just as troubled as Nancy herself. Dean and Celia finally had it out this week and foreshadowed the return of their long-lost daughter Quinn, who we last saw making out with Silas during the show's pilot episode. And in a move that could cost her her life, Nancy squealed to the DEA about the secret tunnel and it was promptly raided. The episode ended with Captain Till's romantic and professional partner Paul getting tortured with a belt sander then murdered, not before he gave up Nancy as an informant. Even her relationship with the Mayor of Tijuana, maestro to this madness, won't help her get out of this one.

Kohan managed to tie up the loose ends of this at times frenetic season together in a perfect bow of fear and funny, just in time for next week's finale. Has Nancy finally gotten herself in too deep? Suddenly those thugs with guns at the end of season two or impending wildfires in season three don't look so bad.

It's official. Showtime just put a nail in the coffin that is HBO television. I am counting the days until next week's episode.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

There's a lot of TV on tonight and frankly I don't want you to miss out.

- First, the show we've all been waiting for with baited breath has finally arrived. Hole In The Wall premieres tonight on Fox at 8/7c. To say I am a little giddy about all of this is an understatement. It's people trying to fit through a hole in a giant wall careening towards them. Honestly? It's pure entertainment.

-The boys on Entourage are back tonight for their 5th season premiere. I will probably catch this but I'm willing to hold out for On Demand. If it's not good from the start, I'm officially giving up. See the ep for yourself tonight at 10/9c on HBO.

-And to get you pumped for your favorite show about celebrities, HBO decided to launch their new show about vampires. True Blood is not something I'd normally enjoy but the premise looks pretty appealing. The show takes place in small-town Louisiana town. Thanks to the miracles of science, vampires can drink synthetic blood and leave the humans alone. This means they can co-exist among the living without causing too much of a stir. Too bad the humans are still a little weary about having their former predators walking the streets again. A waitress in the small town is sympathetic to the vampires' plight, as she too is kind of wack-a-doodle and can hear people's thoughts. It sounds weird but this is pretty much HBO's last grenade in the war against Showtime. Let's hope it doesn't blow up in their faces. True Blood comes on at 9/8c.

The Video Music Awards are on tonight. When watching MTV's self-absorbed awards program, please have these things in mind.

If you are over the age of 14, this show is no longer aimed for your tastes. You may like the music, you may be a fan of the celebrity guests, but that's where the fun ends. The jokes are awful, the sets are gaudy and there are commercial breaks every six seconds since young people can't focus.

If you're 14+ but still want to get the most out of the show, watch the clips online. MTV runs a great website and their video section has just what you're looking for sans the annoying host and excessive build-up.

Britney Spears may or may not be performing and I may or may not give a shit. I am just happy she appears to be taking care of herself now. Though like the rest of the viewing public, I'm still secretly hoping she falls flat on her face.

Friday, September 5, 2008

I am a huge fan of old school ER. I love the stretch of seasons from 1998 to about 2004. It was action-packed, it was dramatic and I had the chance to learn a lot of medical jargon. Compared to Grey's Anatomy, ER (at least the old stuff) was like a medical text book.

Take for instance this direct quote from a nurse onan old episode of ER I saw a few weeks ago:" I'm going to change your pad and massage your uterus to firm it up a bit."

Yikes. And this wasn't said to just any patient or a bit character, this was someone important. Can you imagine a nurse firming up Izzy's uterus? They just don't make TV like they used to.

So imagine my surprise and excitement when I hear the news this week that Dr. Mark Greene (played by America's nerd Anthony Edwards) is returning to ER this season. Now I know what you're thinking, "Isn't he dead?" Yes and that episode was beautiful. (I dare you to watch it without crying.) Since ER isn't crazy enough for zombies, Edwards is returning to ER in flashback form for the show's final season.

Regardless of the reason, I'm happy he's back. Hopefully he'll bring some of the spark back from earlier seasons of the show.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Kim is the equivalent of a puppy running around your legs while you're trying to cook. The puppy trips you up, it begs constantly, it whimpers, and it makes you feel guilty when you don't put down the ladle and play with it. Why is this a problem? Because the spoon in this metaphor is a doomsday device or a nuclear football. Jack Bauer has enough on his mind without adding Kim and oh yeah, her baby to the mix.

GranPop Bauer (and the rest of the country) can't afford to be distracted.

I watched the season premiere of 90210 last night, all two hours of it. It wasn't amazing television by any means but it provided some solid gasp-worthy moments and more than enough teen-drama to outweigh the shaky acting. It made me regret missing out on the old West Beverly High gang the first time around. I may even rent some of the DVDs.

I will be the first to admit that I not only kind of enjoyed 90210, (version 2.0) but I plan on watching it again.

It's not as introspective as Dawson's Creek, it's more fantastical than One Tree Hill and I think it will make good filler for my Tivo, something nice to watch on the weekends or slow nights.

If you missed the first episode, the Remote Island can bring you up to speed with this helpful glossary.

Well, Fox has done it again. Getting a jump on all of the major networks fall lineups and showing the season 4 Prison Break premiere last night. The Break, as I like to call it, rarely disappoints and this premiere was no exception.

Sucre is still a fool for love, T-bag has already eaten his first human, Sarah returns with torture scars (veeerryy similar to Jack Bauer's scars in 24 Season 6) and of course "Linc" has put my Michael in a tough spot.....again. The gang is back together baby! But this time they will have to work as a unit to keep everyone out of jail.

The villains are new, including a bad ass black guy who apparently has no regard for human life. And of course big business is driving governmental decisions and actions (classic Break). The crew is really in for it this year and I think this could be the best season yet!

Quite frankly, my heart is already pounding in anticipation of next weeks episode.